


Part 1: Awaken

by Chogiwatree614



Series: The 7th Sense [1]
Category: NCT (Band), WAYV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, M/M, Superpowers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-09-09
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:20:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25995124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chogiwatree614/pseuds/Chogiwatree614
Summary: "In the irregularity that’s hard to understandThere’s a story that’s deeply hiddenEyes are being opened through this songYour dreams are being readIt’s being awakened from a deep sleepMy seventh sense"
Series: The 7th Sense [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1892446
Comments: 1
Kudos: 1





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Don't worry, the rest of the story is not formatted this way.

_ *phone rings* _

__

_ Jaehyun: Hello? _

__

_ Johnny: Hey. _

__

_ Jaehyun: Johnny, it’s...two in the morning. Why are you calling me? _

__

_ Johnny: I didn’t expect you to be awake. _

__

_ Jaehyun: Well, I am now thanks to you. What do you want? _

__

_ Johnny: Sorry to wake you. I just wanted to talk. _

__

_ Jaehyun: About what? _

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_ Johnny: I don’t know...I had a really weird dream and I can’t sleep now. _

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_ Jaehyun: That’s all you called me for? _

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_ Johnny: I wanted to tell you about it, just to get it off my chest. _

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_ Jaehyun: Fine. What was your dream about? _

__

_ Johnny: I’m not really sure. I remember being in a dark room with nothing but a table and some kind of...I don’t know...crystal ball or something. Anyways, I looked into it and saw an eye, a green one. _

__

_ Jaehyun: That’s very interesting, Johnny. _

__

_ Johnny: But, the weird thing was; it felt so real. I thought I was actually staring into that eye. _

__

_ Jaehyun: Mmmhmm… _

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_ Johnny: When I woke up, something felt different. It felt like someone was in the room, watching me. I turned on the lights, but nothing was there. I still feel uneasy. _

__

_ Jaehyun: It was just a dream. _

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_ Johnny: I know, but this was different. It wasn’t like any dream I’ve had before. _

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_ Jaehyun: Sounds more like a nightmare. _

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_ Johnny: Yeah… _

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_ Jaehyun: Well, you can’t stay awake forever. Try and go back to sleep and leave me be. It’s too early for this. _

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_ Johnny: Sorry for bothering. _

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_ Jaehyun: It’s fine. We’ll talk more tomorrow-er- later today. _

__

_ Johnny: Yeah. See you later. _

__

_ Jaehyun: See ya. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NjgQeN-dIw&t=23s


	2. Superhuman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Johnny meets someone new.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Minor depictions of violence and drinking.

_ Two weeks later… _

The club wasn’t really Johnny’s scene. He didn’t necessarily hate partying but, when college rolled around and he had stupidly decided to take the majority of his classes in the morning, he had become less of a fan. If it was his choice, he wouldn’t be at the Lunar’s Lounge on a Sunday night a day before fall break ended and school started again, but it wasn’t. 

Jaehyun sat to the right of him, completely wasted. His other close friends, all of which Johnny didn’t know the names of, filled the rest of the booth. They were talking and laughing about something; nothing Johnny cared to listen to. He wasn’t about to engage in a conversation with a bunch of douchebags who could barely form a coherent sentence. He didn’t know them and he didn’t want to, despite Jaehyun bringing him there for that exact reason. Instead, he kept himself busy with the bowl of barbecue chips that sat in front of him. 

He had known Jaehyun for years; ever since he was a freshman in high school. They were best friends, so it came as a bit of a shock to see the kind of friends he had other than himself. Jaehyun was nothing like them, at least he wasn’t when he was around Johnny. Even then, Jaehyun didn’t seem to fit in with the rest of the group. He mostly sat there laughing obnoxiously at the other’s tasteless jokes. 

Johnny's eyes glazed over the crowded room in an attempt to keep himself occupied. There wasn’t anything in particular to look at; the scenery hadn’t changed much from when they first arrived earlier that evening. The strobe lights flashed throughout the club and people were still dancing on the dance floor. He could feel himself growing tired and irritated with everything around him and the beginning of a headache formed behind his eyes. 

“Johnny!” Jaehyun's voice shook him out of his trance, bringing his focus back to the booth. “We’re going out on the dance floor, wanna come?” He asked, shaking his arm pleadingly.  _ Great _ , just what he wanted to hear. Why wouldn't they want to dance and prolong his stay some more? 

“I’m good,” He answered, trying his best to be heard over the music, “You go.”

“Ah come on!” Jaehyun exclaimed, the alcohol clear in his voice. “You haven’t done anything fun since we got here. You haven’t even had a drink.” 

“I’m driving, remember?” Johnny quickly responded. Jaehyun pouted. 

“Go, maybe I’ll join later.” He wouldn’t, but he wasn’t about to sit there and listen to him whine. The answer seemed to be enough to satisfy Jaehyun as he scooted out of the booth, joining the rest of his friends on the dance floor. 

His headache was getting worse. A sharp pain shot up the side of his head every time he made any slight movement. He wanted nothing more than to leave. Twenty minutes. He’d give them twenty more minutes before he’d drag all of their asses out of there and head home. He just had to endure the pain a little while longer. 

He leaned back and rested his head on the leather plush of the booth. It was somewhat cold and felt good against his skin, but it wasn’t enough to ease his head. The music was too loud. He felt nauseous. He closed his eyes in hopes that it would calm him down a little and, surprisingly, it seemed to work. The music and the clamor of the room started to dull, turning into a soft murmur. His head still hurt but the room wasn’t so loud. 

He sat there for a while trying to position himself under the air conditioning to relax himself a bit, when he heard a voice. It was faint but loud enough to be heard over the muffled noises of the club. There was a ringing that came with it too. He opened his eyes and looked around the room. 

Nothing. 

Nobody paid any attention to him and Jaehyun was nowhere in sight.  _ Probably just sleep deprived _ , he thought to himself _.  _

He closed his eyes again and shifted back against his seat. The ringing and the voice were growing louder, like someone was turning the dial on a radio. He tried to ignore it, but eventually it was all he could hear. The ringing was becoming too much to bear, until he couldn’t handle it any longer. 

“Hand it over!” 

Johnny opened his eyes and looked around. There was no ringing, no lights, no drunk people... no club. There was only an alleyway. He stood at the center of it, looking down its narrow path. It was dark and the walls were slick from a recent downpour. At the far end, there were three men, two of which had their back turned towards him. He took a step closer, his step echoing off the walls. He continued forward, until he was only a few feet away from them. The two in front wore large hoodies, covering any physical attributes he could use to recognize them. The third man was the only one he could see clearly. His hair was black and he wore a blue collared shirt. The strap of a satchel ran across his torso which the two men in front were pulling at it.

“Please, I don’t have anything.” The man pleaded, his voice shaking with fear. 

“Shut the fuck up!” One man punched him square in the jaw, causing him to stumble to the side. Johnny flinched. 

The other guy grabbed him by his collar and straightened him back up. He yanked the satchel off him before landing another blow to his face. 

“Please,” The man whimpered. 

Johnny watched as the hooded man took a step back with his satchel in hand. “Let’s see what you got.” He said, giving the other man space to have at the guy. And he did— hit after hit. 

It sounded awful in the confined space of the alleyway. Every hit resonated around him. Johnny was horrified. He reached out to do something, but suddenly he couldn't move. All he could do was watch. 

The sound of his fist hitting bone and the grunts of pain echoed throughout the narrow space. Johnny couldn't look at it anymore. He didn't want to be there, wherever  _ there _ was. He squeezed his eyes shut and covered his ears. The ringing came back, but much louder than before. It was overwhelming. He tried to move back, somehow thinking that might help, but it didn’t. Instead, it just kept getting louder. He fell to his knees.

And then it was gone. 

There was no more ringing, just the sound of music. He opened his eyes. People stood under the flashing lights, dancing and drinking and locking lips, just as before. His headache was completely gone.

He sat there, stunned. He ran his hands along his chest and arms to check if he was really there.  _ Yep, still alive. _ He spotted Jaehyun in the crowd, dancing like a maniac with some of his other friends. It was time to go. Johnny had no idea if it had been twenty minutes yet but he didn’t care, he needed to get out of the club. 

He quickly scooted out of the booth and headed towards the dance floor. “Jaehyun!” He shouted as he pushed through the crowd of people. Jaehyun didn’t respond. He was too busy trying to get a piggyback from the dude next to him. 

After struggling to get through, he finally reached him. “Jaehyun!” He exclaimed again, this time getting his attention. 

“Johnny, you came!” He threw his hands around his neck, practically pulling him to the ground. 

“Jaehyun, we’re leaving.” He pried his arms off of him, gripping his elbow to make sure he wouldn’t leave. 

“What?! We can’t leave yet! You just got here!” 

Johnny took a deep inhale, trying to calm himself down. Internally, he was still shaken up over what happened. “Jaehyun, we have school tomorrow and we need some sleep.” 

“Screw school!” 

Johnny rolled his eyes and forcefully pulled Jaehyun forward. He was done trying to convince him. He searched for the others and pulled them by his side, one by one. He could still hear Jaehyun complaining behind him, but paid him no attention. 

“That’s everybody, right?” Johnny asked himself. He took a head count and counted four in total.  _ Shit _ . There should’ve been five, not four. He ran his hand through his hair as he looked around for any familiar faces. He walked around with the rest of the group following behind him like a bunch of puppies, being sure to periodically check back if they were all there. Eventually, he found the guy at the back of the room, making out with some girl. 

“We’re leaving, let’s go.” Johnny grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him away “What the hell, man!” He ignored him and headed straight towards the exit. He stepped to the side as he watched Jaehyun and his friends exit before him. He took one last look at the club, before following them out the door. 

The cold air immediately hit him as he stepped outside. His black pickup truck wasn’t parked too far away, but with the others stumbling around and getting distracted every two seconds, it took a lot longer to get there then he liked. 

“Guys, come on.” He watched as two of them began wrestling each other in the middle of the parking lot. With a frustrated sigh, he walked over to them and tried pulling them apart. It took a minute to get them back on their feet, but even then they were still pushing each other. One of them shoved the other into a man walking by.

“Sorry.” Johnny rushed an apology to him and the friend he was walking with. The man just gave him a dirty look before putting on his hoodie and walking forward. Johnny continued to usher the other two into the truck.

“I don’t see you giving Jaehyun a hard time.” One of them said when he was finally in the car. 

Johnny looked at him, confused. “What do you mean?” 

He lazily pointed his finger ahead of him. Johnny followed it to where they had exited the building. Beside the door, he saw Jaehyun leaning against the wall.

He quickly walked over to him. “Jaehyun, we need to go.” 

Jaehyun let his head droop to the side. “I think I’m gonna be sick.” Just as he said it, he hunched over, letting out the contents of the meal he had earlier that day. Johnny stood disgusted, but not surprised; Jaehyun had been drinking for hours and it was only a matter of time. 

He rubbed his back to provide some comfort to Jaehyun as he waited for him to be done. Having no desire to watch, he turned away from the revolting sight and looked around the parking lot instead. His eyes landed on the two men from earlier. They were walking quickly, like they were trying to get somewhere in a hurry. 

Their heads hung low. Johnny kept his eyes glued on them. He suddenly felt anxious. He immediately thought back to the incident in the alleway. They looked like they could be the men, their outfits were similar. 

_ No, that’s ridiculous. It has to be some sort of coincidence. Just because they have hoodies on, doesn’t mean they’re the men I saw.  _

He glanced away from them, but his attention was quickly drawn to another man walking on the sidewalk. He headed straight towards the other two, his eyes looking down and his hand tightly gripping the strap of his bag. No, his satchel. 

When it clicked in Johnny’s head, the scene was already playing out. He heard the hushed voices exchanged between the three before they pushed the man into the alleyway. 

If he was right, he needed to act fast. "Jaehyun, stay here." He helped sit Jaehyun on the ground. He complied and leaned his back against the wall. 

Once Jaehyun was situated, Johnny jogged over to the alleyway entrance, staring down the confined space. Everything was the same; the man in blue stood pinned against the wall, the hooded men hovered over him, and he stood motionless. He didn't know whether to call out to them and tell them to stop. 

_ What if they have guns? What if they turn around and beat me up instead?  _

"Please," The man in blue pleaded upon being socked in the face.  _ I'm wasting too much time,  _ Johnny thought. He didn't have a plan nor anytime to make one. He had to do something.

"Let's see what you got." 

"Hey!" 

All three men looked at Johnny. Before anyone could say anything, Johnny pushed the first hooded man. He didn't realize how much force he used until the man fell into his partner, knocking them both down. 

"What the hell?!" 

Johnny leaned over to grab the same thug by his jacket and punched him square in the jaw, just for extra precaution.

"I'll call the police." Was all Johnny could think to say in the moment. He could feel his heart thumping in his chest. He hoped it was enough to scare them off. 

The two of them stumbled to get up. Johnny held his fist up again in the hopes of being intimidating. He didn't feel threatening, but it seemed to work. 

"Whatever man." The two glared at the man in blue but didn't try anything. They pushed past Johnny and headed out of the alleyway like nothing happened.

It went better than Johnny expected. He was shocked. No gunshot wound, no stab wound, not even a bruise. All he could do was stare at the opening of the alleyway and wonder how he got so lucky. 

"You saved me." 

Right, the man in blue. Johnny turned to look at him. His eye was already turning into a shade of red from the punch he received. 

"Yeah." Johnny didn’t know what else to say. He did save him and he felt good about it, but the whole thing still felt surreal. 

"What's your name?" The man asked.

"Johnny." 

The man nodded and gave a small smile. After a moment or two Johnny got the hint that he should ask the same thing. "And, uh… what's your name?" 

"Doyoung." 

"Doyoung," Johnny repeated, "nice to meet you." 

Before the conversation could continue, a honk sounded in the distance, followed by the loud voices of Jaehyun's friends.

"That's me. I gotta go." Johnny said. Doyoung nodded with understandment and Johnny took that as his signal to leave. 

As he was walking away, Doyoung called out. "Johnny!" 

Johnny turned to look at him.

"Thank you." 

Johnny smiled. "No problem."


	3. I Can't Stand The Rain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Familiar faces.

He stood in an empty room with nothing but a bookshelf beside him. There were no windows, no doors, no people. Nothing but blackness that stretched for eternity. 

There was a woman’s voice. She screamed at the top of her lungs, but not a word could be understood. It sounded like it was in front of him, then behind him, to his left, then to his right, until it was all around. He whipped his head around in every direction. The voice bounced off the walls, echoing through his ears.

Then, a figure appeared before him. The screams continued ringing in the distance. The figure fell back into the bookshelf, hitting his head on wood. He tried to catch the unidentifiable person, but couldn’t hold a firm grip. The figure dropped to his feet, completely still. He circled around, searching for a way out, but he was trapped.

“Johnny!” The girl screamed.

He shot awake, sweat trickling down his face. He sat up in his bed, realizing he was still in bed back at the dorm. Jaehyun snored beside him, wrapped up tightly in his sheets. Johnny climbed out of bed and went to the bathroom to wash his face.

It was seven thirty in the morning. He would be late for class if he didn’t leave soon. 

“Jaehyun, wake up. We’ve got to go.”

He responded with a grunt. Johnny wiped his face and went to his closet to change, smacking Jaehyun’s foot as he passed him.

“Staying home...I’ve got a headache.” He groaned.

“Looks like somebody had too much to drink.” Johnny said.

𝌀

The first day back after a long break was always the worst. The events from the night before kept Johnny up most of the night, as well as the strange dream from earlier that morning. 

At least he didn’t have it as bad as Jaehyun. 

He walked across the grassy knoll at UN Village University, heading for the west side of campus. Poetry class started at eight in the morning, leaving him hardly any time to eat. He had breakfast on his way there, finishing the last of his egg sandwich as he entered the classroom.

“Good morning, Johnny.” The professor waved with a smile. Johnny waved back, beaming brighter than usual to disguise the sleep in his eyes. He took his seat towards the back of the room. A few seats behind him sat Mark Lee, who always arrived earlier than everyone else.

Mark Lee was an acquaintance of Johnny’s, if you could even call him that. He met Mark in freshman year of high school. He, Jaehyun, and Johnny all had third-hour P.E together. Having a best friend in the class meant Johnny was rarely paired up with anyone else. But, on those handful of days when the teacher chose partners, he was stuck with someone he didn’t know.

Mark just so happened to be one of those people. They were on a team together for badminton; them versus two girls. Jung Wheein and Ahn Hyejin if Johnny remembered correctly.

Mark was a rather quiet person. He hardly talked to anyone in the class, not even the people who seemed to be friends with him. Apart from a few encouraging words whenever it was Johnny’s turn to serve, he said nothing.

Then, in sophomore year, they had history together. For the first semester, the two boys sat at the same table, which meant lots of group projects together. Johnny learned soon enough that Mark wasn’t much of a public speaker.

The first presentation they had to do was a slideshow about ancient civilizations. The moment Mark’s slide appeared on the projector, he stared down at his notecards and read it word for word in a shaky voice.

They never talked outside that class. Being on the varsity hockey team, Mark spent most of his time with the athletes. Johnny said hello to him a couple of times when passing him in the hallway, but that was about as far as their interactions went outside the classroom.

He didn’t have any more classes with him until college. Apparently, Mark had an interest in English too, specifically poetry. When Johnny found out he was in the same poetry class, he tried to reconnect with him. Mark remembered him, much to his surprise.

“We had history together sophomore year.” Mark said.

“Yeah. We were in P.E together too. It’s crazy we got the same class in college.”

“Yeah.”

Mark went back to his seat after that brief interaction, hardly speaking to him ever again. He never initiated the conversations; that was apparently Johnny’s job. He couldn’t get Mark to talk unless he talked to him first. Luckily, he had plenty of assignments to ask him about whenever he needed a conversation starter. Mark had a natural skill with a pen, so he always helped Johnny out on the assignments.

Since he had no work over the fall break, Johnny had nothing to talk to him about that day. He considered asking him about his break, but he seemed busy. He had his phone sitting on top of his desk as he texted someone, his brow furrowed in concentration.

As more students shuffled into the classroom, he became less absorbed in his texts. He glanced around, using one arm to shield his phone from lingering eyes.

It seemed like a good time to approach him, so Johnny got up from his seat to greet him. “Hey, Mark.”

He cleared his throat. “Uh, hey, Johnny.”

“How was your fall break?”

“Good.” His phone buzzed again and his attention averted back to his phone. He didn’t spare Johnny another glance, so he took that as a sign he should leave.

As he was returning to his seat, the professor began the lesson. “Alright everyone, settle down. Welcome back. I hope everyone had a good fall break.” He paused and looked around for affirming nods.

“Well, now that break is over, it’s time to get back to work!”

No one shared the same enthusiasm as he did.

“So,” He clapped his hands together. “Today we will be starting with a poem called ‘The 7th Sense’.” He grabbed a small book off his desk. “Has anyone heard of it?”

The room fell silent. The professor looked around for any hands. He craned his neck to see past Johnny and a row of other students. “Mark.”

Johnny turned around to find Mark with his hand raised. He awkwardly shifted in his seat when he realized all eyes were glued to him. “It’s a poem by Chinese author Xiao Dejun. ‘The 7th Sense’ is his most famous work. It’s a poem written from the perspective of an nctizen.”

The professor nodded in approval. “Very good, Mark. ‘The 7th Sense’ is highly regarded as one of the most important pieces of writing of our time. The story is told in such vivid detail, many believe Xiao Dejun was an nctizen himself.” He stopped at one end of the whiteboard and scanned the classroom. “Does anyone know what an nctizen is?”

Another student, Jennie Kim, raised her hand. She straightened herself up, a cocky smile on her face with that obnoxious haughty demeanor that drove the other students crazy. 

“Yes, Jennie.”

“An nctizen is someone who can use both the 6th and 7th sense, unlike most normal people.” She answered.

“Actually,” Mark interrupted, avoiding eye contact with Jennie. “Anyone can use the 6th sense. The 6th sense is simply an extrasensory perception that allows humans to subconsciously sense things that aren’t really there, like a gut feeling. It’s only the 7th sense that can be used by nctizens.”

“You are exactly right, Mark.” The professor applauded him, earning Mark a dirty look from Jennie.

“Now, I want everyone to sign into our class shell and pull up the pdf I uploaded for you. We will be reading through the poem silently and discussing the piece afterwards.”

Johnny took his laptop out of his backpack and signed into the class. The first assignment in the class shell was to analyze what the poem was about. Understanding the underlying meaning of a poem wasn’t Johnny’s strong suit, so he could already tell it was going to be an assignment Mark had to help him with.

He downloaded the pdf to find the poem was a lot longer than he expected. It was about three pages, meaning he had lots to analyze. Luckily, some of the lines repeated, but there was probably a significant reason they did that he had to write about.

He read through the poem, completely confused but strangely intrigued. He didn’t understand it, but that’s what made it more interesting to read. It went something like this...

“The 7th Sense” by Xiao Dejun

In this cold world, I’m closing my eyes

Laying down in bed, covering my ears

Yesterday is today, today is yesterday

I’m only filled with late self-guilt

We’ll take it slow

Baby, We’ll take it slow

In the same dream

I hear a familiar song that calls to me

It connects us

It wraps around me, hate is on me

Each day repeats but it’s okay

I’m walking on top of a deep darkness

Look at what’s real that’s hidden over there

Open Your Eyes quietly Open Your Eyes

Hatred that will not go away and dreams that torture me

The clock laughs at me, it does not give a single error

I’m a mess, I don’t even know myself, my future is colored darkly

I’m struggling, coloring this night even blacker

I’m still going somewhere

To an unknown place, to an unknown hall

I’m spending most of my time

At a place that’s uncomfortable even after several nights, like an explorer

And that’s a long ass ride

Mindlessly going around until I close my eyes

I’m doubting this moment, between dreams and reality

I have something else to check, just like you right now

Open Your Eyes quietly Open Your Eyes

In the irregularity that’s hard to understand

There’s a story that’s deeply hidden

Eyes are being opened through this song

Your dreams are being read

It’s being awakened from a deep sleep

My seventh sense

This night came to me

A different dream is getting closer

Now I understand as if everything is mine

Open Your Eyes

Look at what’s real, Open Your Eyes

Open Your Eyes

Open Your Eyes 

I’m not alone I I

The professor regrouped the class after forty minutes of reading to go over the assignment. “Alright, now that you’ve read through the poem, I want to discuss the meaning behind it. We will be discussing it together, so take notes if you’d like.”

Johnny opened a blank document on his laptop meant for notes, but his mind wandered elsewhere. The class discussion went in one ear and out the other, leaving the document untouched.

“Would anyone like to share their opinions on the piece?” The professor asked, looking around the room. “Anyone want to take a guess at what the poem is about?”

Jennie raised her hand again. “I think the poem is about an nctizen who is depressed because he doesn’t understand his abilities. He clearly doesn’t know much about the 7th sense, therefore he doesn’t understand himself.”

The professor nodded. “Anyone else? How about you, Mark?”

Mark looked up from his phone. “Um...I think the poem is about a man who understands the 7th sense all too well. He knows people won’t accept him because of his abilities and he has experienced first hand the mistreatment of nctizens. I think he’s addressing younger nctizens, warning them about the reality of the world, and how he has hope that they can change it for the better.”

“An interesting interpretation, Mark. Anyone else?” His eyes landed on Johnny. “Johnny, how about you share?”

_ Shit. _

He hadn’t heard the question. The only thing on his mind were the thugs at the club. They were on the verge of hurting that Doyoung guy, but they didn’t. Johnny stopped them before they could. But, how? How could he have predicted their actions before it unfolded?

“Johnny?”

“Uh, well...I-I think it’s about a man who has fallen in love with another nctizen and he wants to...like, protect his lover from prejudice I guess…”

“That is an excellent analysis, Johnny. Tell me; why do you think he is addressing his lover in this piece?”

“Because…” He scrolled through the document, looking for a quote. “He refers to them as ‘baby’ and talks about how they’re connected.”

“Interesting. Anyone else?”

He let out a sigh of relief when the professor moved on to someone else. His analysis was ridiculously stupid compared to the others, but he was glad the professor thought otherwise.

“Why do you think Xiao Dejun repeats the line ‘quietly open your eyes’ throughout the piece?” The professor asked.

“I think he’s telling himself that he needs to realize his life is not going to get better.” Jennie said. “He then takes his own life at the end of the poem, and he says he’s not alone because death is there to accompany him.”

“Good. What do you think he is trying to reinforce?”

“He’s trying to show the struggles of nctizens and how harmful the prejudices against them are.”

“Would anyone like to add to that?”

Mark raised his hand once again. “I don’t think he kills himself at the end. I think he realizes that his life will end soon because people are hunting him. He loses hope at first, but soon learns that there are more nctizens who can fight against discrimination. He asks them to open their eyes to the truth, see the prejudices they face, and do something about it. When he is confident they will carry on his mission, he doesn’t feel alone anymore.”

“Excellent.” The professor looked up at the clock. Only twenty minutes of class left. “I want everyone to write an essay about your interpretation of the piece and submit it by the end of class. We will continue this discussion tomorrow.”

Twenty minutes wasted staring out a window and getting lost in his own thoughts. Johnny watched as grey clouds rolled in, bringing a small drizzle with it.

The vision he had at the club; it was identical to the scene in the alleyway. The men wore the same clothes, spoke the same words, acted in the same manner. There was no denying it was all indistinguishable.

The rain came down harder and the distant sound of thunder could be heard. The clouds grew darker. From the looks of it, it would be a bad storm.

Johnny’s attention was pulled away from the window when he heard someone’s chair skid across the floor. He turned around to find Mark standing at his desk, his phone in his hand. “Professor, may I leave early?” He asked.

“What for?”

“It’s important.” Was all he said.

The professor gestured to the door with a sigh. “Make sure you finish your paper.”

Mark swung his backpack over his shoulder and jogged towards the door. “I promise I’ll submit it as soon as possible.”

“See you tomorrow, Mark.”

Johnny turned back to the window to see the small drizzle was a complete downpour. Mark ran into the rain with his jacket over his head and his phone to his ear. He ran towards the parking lot, disappearing from Johnny’s sight.

Soon after, the teacher dismissed the class. Johnny pulled his hoodie over his head and hugged his backpack to his chest, protecting his laptop from the rain.

The droplets of water came down so hard, he couldn’t see the building in front of him. He bumped into a couple of kids, accidentally knocking their binders out of their arms.

Thunder cracked above his head, followed by another flash of lightning. Strong winds rocked the trees and sent homework flying across campus.

He cupped one hand over his eyes, squinting at the grassy knoll up ahead. Students frantically ran around, trying to find the nearest shelter.

He heard a woman’s voice shouting over the beating rain. It was hard to make out everything she said, but he did catch, “In here!”

He ran forward and ended up crashing into a trashcan. To his right was the door to the library. The librarian beckoned him over, trying her best to stay under the canopy so her hair wouldn’t get wet.

Johnny stepped inside and brushed water off his jacket. A few other students sat at the couches, their hair soaking wet and their backpacks laying out to dry. He set his out to dry as well, then went to the librarian’s desk to grab a tissue.

He wiped the water from his face as he watched the downpour through the window. “It’s pretty bad out there.” The librarian commented.

“Yeah.”

“It’s best you all stay here until it lets up. Your teachers will understand. You’re welcome to check out some books while you wait.”

He sat down in one of the aisles, his back against the bookshelf. He took his laptop out and pulled up the poem again, intent on finishing his paper. Hearing Mark and Jennie’s opinions made it somewhat easier to understand, but he still couldn’t fully grasp the deeper meaning.

It wasn’t long before his mind drifted again, back to the night before. The club, Doyoung, the thugs, the vision...

“Is that ‘The 7th Sense’ by Xiao Dejun?” He heard a voice say.

Johnny looked up to find another student hovering over him, watching his laptop. He had black hair with a white button up shirt.

Doyoung. The guy from the club. So, he went to UN Village University too.

“Doyoung?”

“Johnny.” He smiled at me. “I didn’t expect to run into you here.”

“Yeah, me too.” He pushed himself off the floor and closed his laptop. “So, you’re a student here?”

“Yeah. I’m a sophomore.”

“Really? Me too.” Johnny would’ve never guessed he was around the same age. He appeared much younger.

“So, what are you majoring in?” Doyoung asked.

“English.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I’m kind of a bookworm, but I’m not the best at writing. My mom told me I should become an author in the future, but I don’t have much faith in my work.”

“What do you write?”

Johnny chuckled nervously. “Umm...fiction and stuff. Nothing great.”

“Do you share your stories? I’d be interested in reading some.”

“Oh no. No one outside my family has read my work. I have a lot to learn before I start putting my stories out there. What about you? What are you majoring in?”

Doyoung’s eyes seemed to light up with excitement. “Neuroscience.”

“Wow, I hear that’s pretty hard.”

“Yeah, but it’s totally worth it. The topics we learn about are so interesting. It’s not so bad if you enjoy the subject.”

“What do you guys do exactly?”

“Basically, we study the brain and how it affects behavior, cognitive functions, thoughts, senses. We learn about the nervous system, psychology, we work with math, engineering, linguistics, chemistry, medicine…”

“Sounds like you guys do a lot.” 

“Yeah!” He clasped his hands together. “There’s so much to learn about and so many different branches. I’m currently learning about sensory science, which has been my favorite.”

“What’s that?”  
“It focuses on the human senses. You know; sight, smell, all of those.”

“Huh. I was actually kind of learning about the senses too.”

“I can see that.” He tapped the front of Johnny’s laptop. “I’ve read ‘The 7th Sense’ and it was amazing. I’m not much of a poetry guy, but this piece was like no other I had ever read. I even bought a signed copy.”

“Yeah, it is pretty good.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Do you by any chance know what it’s about?”

Doyoung laughed. “I’m not that great at analyzing literature, but I always assumed it was about the struggles of being an nctizen. It seems the narrator…” His sentence trailed off.

“What?”

He stared at something behind Johnny, a blank expression on his face, and his eyelids flickering. Johnny followed his gaze. Nothing but a bookshelf.

“Doyoung?” He reached out to touch his shoulder. “You okay, man?”

Doyoung squeezed his eyes shut and stumbled back into the bookshelf. Johnny tried catching him, but the laptop in his hands prevented him from being much help. He collapsed to the floor, pale and motionless.

Johnny’s heart raced in his chest as he raked his mind for a plan of action. No matter how many times he shook Doyoung, he didn’t move. He couldn’t waste any more time. He needed to call for help.

“Hey!” He shouted to the librarian. When she saw Doyoung laying on the floor, she ran to his side.

“What happened? Is he alright?” She asked.

“I-I don’t know. We were just talking, and then-”

An ear-piercing shriek cut him off. Johnny stood up to find a girl in the adjacent aisle, screaming at the top of her lungs. Her hands were over her ears. She kept muttering something to herself, but he couldn’t make out any of the words.

“What’s wrong?” The librarian ran to her aid. “Dear, tell me what’s wrong?”

The girl furiously shook her head. “What’s happening?! I don’t understand! Help me, please!”

The librarian ran back to her desk and dialed 911. Johnny stayed by Doyoung’s side, watching his face for any indications that he was waking up.

The other students crowded around the couches, watching the screaming girl as she paced back and forth, banging her fists against her head.

“Johnny!” She screamed.

He froze. He had no idea who she was, or how she knew him. She stared at him with wide eyes, then glanced down at Doyoung. A sob escaped her mouth.

“Oh god, what’s happening...what’s happening...Johnny, help me!”

All eyes were on him. He wanted to help her, but didn’t know how. He couldn’t even bring himself to move.

“It’s alright, dear. Just calm down. Help is on the way.” The librarian cooed, rubbing the girls back.

But, she wouldn’t calm down. She wouldn’t stop pacing, or bruising the sides of her head. “Help me...please…”

“Please, calm down. Everything will be fine.” The librarian’s tone went from soothing to urgent. She held the girl’s arm, trying to keep her still. “It’ll be okay.”

The girl looked at Doyoung one last time, tears in her eyes, before her face went completely blank. She blinked a couple of times, looking between Johnny and the librarian. “What the hell just happened?”

They were speechless. The librarian opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. The girl stared at her in confusion, not a hint of panic on her face.

Then, Doyoung shot up, his eyes wide and breath quickening. He grabbed his chest, sucking in air as tears filled his eyes. “Oh god…” He muttered.

“Doyoung, are you okay?” Johnny asked.

He nodded his head, despite being clearly distraught. He took in a couple shaky breathes, trying to steady his breathing.

“The ambulance is on their way. Don’t move until they arrive.” The librarian demanded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aY3CvP_CwfA


End file.
